Apparently I Have A Knack For Getting Violent Hens

[DeRock89]

I’m at my wits end... It seems im running a chicken gladiator arena. I have 8 hens total. Several Hens have bald spots and blood has been drawn a few times. I’ve posted about the violence between two of my adult hens, I’ve tried the advice to segregate the aggressor(Black Sumatran) in a pin right in the middle of the main run so that she is in constant contact and view with the hen she picks on without actually being able to attack her. It’s been three weeks now. I try removing her once a week and see how it goes and within an hour she starts attacking the same bird(Big Jersey). She always pecks at the back of her head so the Big Jersey has a bald spot on the back of her neck and head. I segregated after it started bleeding the first time.

I only have three adult hens right now in the main run. The bully bird leaves the third one alone. When she attacks the big Jersey, she will lay on her belly with her wings splayed a little(I assume a gesture of submission but the bully still wants to peck her)

On to the others. I have 5 young ones in a pins in my garage because apparently it’s not going to warm up this spring... Originally I got four 7 week old Easter Eggers and one silkie. I lost three Easter Eggers to Coccidiosis, treated all the other hens.

I got three more Easter Eggers to replace the ones I lost but because they are three weeks younger then the Easter Egger and silkie, these three have been in their own pin for three weeks.

With these three, one has a bald spot on her back, just above her tail where one is Picking on her, and and at one point her beak bled from the other pecking her. These three have been super skiddish. They flip out and squish themselves in the corner of the pin(6 foot by 6 foot) at any sign of movement and I think maybe their pecking is just a product of fighting to be who gets to be the most squished into the corner.. I don’t know. The other two young ones are calm and not scared like the other three.

They are all pretty close in size now. The silkie and the oldest Easter Egger are best buddies and don’t hurt each other. The three weeks are up so yesterday I tried moving all the young ones together to see how it goes. Immediately the three youngest did their usual thing and went to the corner and started jumping up and down on top of each other like leap frog. The oldest Easter Egger watched for awhile, then decided to start doing like a posturing thing and cornered them in their corner and Would just peck at them while they jump up and down in the corner. It’s almost like it’s like she’s like, “Well if you guys are going to act like that, then I guess I’ll peck at you.” Sooo I separated them again...

I feel like no matter what I do, it’s going to be like Highlander. “There can be only one!”. Segrigation in view is not working. Im in the process of fencing in my yard and building a big coop so that all 8 can free range, but I have to finish the fence, and the young ones have to get old enough(I assume 3 months old) before they can mingle with the three adults. I don’t want it to be a battle ground though...

I understand chickens have to establish a pecking order, but I don’t want any to be permanently killed or maimed in the process. In the least, a few are going to be partly bald of feathers in places. They can’t seem to establish it. I understand I may have to just happen, but drawing blood i can’t see just letting it happen. Chickens peck at red, so if ones bleeding then the non agressors are going to start pecking them...

 

[azygous]

Well, pecking order aside, sometimes you just have to level the playing field. Have you heard of pinless peepers? You put these little blinders on hens that are aggressive and pick and peck a lot at their mates.

Peepers don't hurt the wearer, but their forward vision is inhibited, preventing them from focusing on a target. The are still able to see danger from the sky as well as see downward to eat and peck the ground.

You need snapring pliers to put them on, but it's easy once you get the hang of it. I have two hens that wear the peepers all spring and summer since that seems to be when chicken peck each other the most. I take them off in winter.

 

[Ridgerunner]

This has probably been covered in your other threads but what is the physical size (in feet or meters) of the facilities, coops and runs? Photos could help a lot too. A big cause of these types of behavior is crowding. That 6 x 6 pen does not sound big enough but what else do you have to work with?

Another issue is maturity. Until they mature enough to force their way into the pecking order more mature birds tend to peck at immature birds. In my experience this has nothing to do with size, it has everything to do with maturity. It sounds like you could have both of these going on with the younger birds.

As far as the two older ones go I have had a chicken take a strong dislike toward another. For whatever reasons one bird goes out of their way to try to kill the other. It's personal, just between those two. Other chickens are not affected. Sometimes you can modify that behavior. The see but don't touch is not working, so maybe try total isolation if you can. Put the bully somewhere that she cannot see the others for at least a week. Sometimes that messes up her place in the pecking order and she acts differently when you put her back in. Sometimes, not always. Maybe try that while you order pinless peepers.

In my flock a hen that disrupted the peace and welfare of the flock would not long be in my flock. That's for my peace of mind as well as the overall benefit of the flock. I understand people get attached to their individual chickens but I look at it as the flock is what is important. Individual members of the flock can change.